Souls: Unravel & Entwine
by Lady Lily Anne
Summary: Ling Qi/Soul Contract/Spiritpact: Yang Jinghua was lost. With Duanmu Xi dead, he no longer had anything to exist for. And then one meddling mischievous spirit decided to grant his silent plea…
1. Reset

**Chapter One: Reset**

 _This work was inspired by Dudette_Mal's story A Future's Shadow. Thank you!_

 _I prefer the original Chinese version, so I will be using those names instead._

 _A brief list of terms for those who are confused:_

 _Yang Jinghua = You Keika_  
 _Duanmu Xi = Tanmoku Ki_  
 _Yangning Zicheng = You Shisei/Nei_  
 _Duanmu Luoyue = Tanmoku Rakugetsu_  
 _Shenlong Zhangxuan = Shinryuu Shouken_  
 _Luoyue Jian = Rakugetsu Sword_  
 _Yangmingsi = Youmeishi_

 _More will be added as I go along. Updates will be sporadic as I'm writing this as I go._

Utter darkness. Infinite black surrounding him, Yang Jinghua drifted. "Duanmu Xi is gone…I couldn't save him…Why?"

A voice echoed around him, "Do you want to save him, Yang Jinghua?"

Without hesitation, without fear, he answered. "Yes."

A mischievous laugh resounded. "As you wish, enjoy your second chance, little descendant of Zicheng."

"…That voice, it couldn't be!" He tumbled through the darkness, falling endlessly.

* * *

He woke with a stifled scream, still reeling from that unending fall. "Hello Jinghua," a voice echoed from above his head.

The former ghost let out a shriek in surprise. Staring at him was his ancestor, the original Yangning. "How are you here? Aren't you still sealed within the Luoyue Jian?"

The spirit smiled softly at him. "The sword was broken, and so I was fully released. Although that has not happened yet in this time, a side effect is that I have remained unsealed, though the Louyue still maintains its abilities and purpose. And so I chose to remain with you."

"In this time, you said," said Jinghua, in a daze. He looked at his hands, smaller than what he remembered, even in the fourteen year old form that he had spent so much time in after death. "When are we?"

"Sometime shortly after your tenth birthday, I believe. Lord Luoyue wanted you to have a chance to save your parents."

"Duanmu Luoyue?" He asked in confusion. "If he's sealed within my blood, why isn't he here?"

The spirit let out a sigh of relief. "It's another side effect of that other time. Your death did unleash him, and though you may be alive now, his seal has been loosened. It's fine though, because he hasn't gone insane again. My presence is keeping him stable and sane. He decided to go watch over his own descendant and see how he's doing."

"Duanmu Xi, he's in the hospital right now! I have to go see him! Does he have his memories too?" Jinghua scrambled out of his covers, falling and making a thud in the process.

Zicheng bent down, helping to untangle the now child from his blankets. "He doesn't right now, but upon becoming the Yangmingsi, he will receive them after the ceremony. You should calm down. Lord Luoyue will let us know if there's any change in his situation. And your parents are coming now, but they will not be able to see me, so do not worry about that." With that, he stepped back, leaving plenty of space between himself and his descendant, fading into a layer of the world that only Jinghua could see through.

And true to his words, Jinghua's door slammed open, his mother and father in the doorway. "Jinghua, are you okay? We heard a scream and a thud, so we were worried that a spirit came to attack you."

He blinked back tears, a watery smile directed towards his parents. They were alive now, and this time, he could keep them alive. He could save Duanmu Xi. The shock was beginning to set in now, but he had to hold it back a little longer. He didn't want to make his parents any more troubled. "Mom, Dad, I'm fine, I just had a nightmare and fell out of bed. I'm not hurt, don't worry."

His mother cupped his face in her hands. "Are you sure? You're feeling a bit warm. Maybe you should stay home from school today, and keep from getting sick."

The former spirit shadow shook his head, "No, I want to go to school. I made a new friend that I want to hang out with after. I'll be fine, don't worry about me. And thanks Dad," he directed towards the man peeling him out of the blankets.

"You're welcome, Jinghua. You can go to school, but if you don't feel well, just let the main office know and we'll come to pick you up, okay? Don't push yourself."

He beamed in relief. "Thanks! Don't worry, I will. Okay, I have to get ready now or I'll be late."

His parents laughed and walked out his door, though still slightly concerned. "Your breakfast is downstairs, so hurry and come eat it while it's still warm."

He nodded his head in response, and finally they were gone. Legs trembling, Jinghua slumped onto the ground, finally allowing the ramifications of everything to hit him. Zicheng went over to him, concerned. He had stayed out of the way during his heir's reunion with his parents, but now he was free to worry about the now child without concern for who could see him.

"Jinghua, it's okay. You have time to change everything, and Lord Luoyue and I will be with you to guide you if necessary. You won't fail." He had finally given into his inclination to hold the child and stroke his hair, in an attempt to comfort him. It was reasonable to panic, considering how the last life had ended, but this time, he would spare his descendant, and his lord's descendant from the tragedy that had encompassed their lives. They deserved far better, even if it was the tragedies had drawn them together again in the end.

The former spirit pulled himself together slowly. "You're right. I can break apart once everything is done. Now, I have to go to school, and then find Duanmu Xi. And I need to figure out a way to keep in contact with him, so when we eventually move away, we can still talk. There won't be any long separations like last time, and this time, I won't let Zhangxuan sacrifice himself like that for our Xi." He stood up, but smiled softly at his ancestor. "Thank you, Zicheng."

The swordsman looked away in embarrassment. "It's fine, now hurry and get ready. I'll fix your hair for you."

"All right."

* * *

Jinghua sighed in relief, glad to be out of school. As much as he enjoyed being back in time, the mind-numbing drudgery of education was not something he had missed. Though he was surprised to note that he did have a better understanding of everything he was learning than his first time around. Maybe it was because he could understand why he would need it in the future.

But that was beside the point. Jinghua could finally talk to Zicheng and Luoyue in order to get the full explanation as to why he was back in time, more than a decade before his actual death. And he could find Dianmu Xi. Ever since he had awakened in this time, he could feel the Yangmingsi. The connection was not what it had once been, but he could feel that the other was in pain.

Finding an abandoned section of a playground by the woods, he turned to face his invisible follower. "Zicheng, you said Luoyue sent me back so I could protect Duanmu this time. Why?"

The swordsman looked away from the sky; turning to answer his descendant "Lord Luoyue is on his way to explain, but basically, it was because your souls are tied. And because the both of us are tied to you specifically, it was easier to drag your soul back."

The first Yangmingsi appeared at that, deciding to pipe in. "And you two got yourselves into the most amusing messes. It would be entertaining to watch you stumble out of those again, and make new ones."

Jinghua looked at him deadpan. "So you were bored."

"That's right!" And then the grin on his face slid away to be replaced by something more serious. "Both of us owed you a debt, for unsealing Zicheng, and returning my sanity to me. And the two of you suffered so much and were gone so soon, we wanted to give you a chance at happiness. With the two of you here, with knowledge of how this can turn out, your lives can be changed for the better."

Jinghua studied the older man's face, judging his sincerity. Not feeling anything suspicious, he nodded. "Thank you. But what did Zicheng mean by Duanmu Xi remembering only after becoming the Yangmingsi? Why am I remembering so much earlier? And why can I still feel his soul?"

"You can still sense him?" Zicheng asked in surprise.

"Yes, but it's duller than what it could be." A hand came up to brush his chest, the spot where he could feel the connection to his partner.

Luoyue walked around him, examining something beyond the other two's mortal perceptions. "Ah," he said at last. "You two truly are quite the interesting pair aren't you? It seems that a bond between a spirit shadow and a contractor can withstand even the reversal of time. The bond has weakened due to Duanmu Xi's death in that previous time, but is still intact and can be fully re-established to its previous strength. Of course, as Duanmu Xi is not currently aware of the previous events, the bond will remain dormant on his side until he is awakened."

"Oh," responded the former spirit shadow in stunned realization. "I guess that makes sense, considering the countless times we just created a new contract over the others. But you were with him today right? Where and how is he?"

Luoyue frowned in displeasure. "He's in the hospital right now, affected by an attempted blood transfusion. And his mother isn't handling the situation well at all."

Jinghua leapt up from where he sitting in a rush. "She authorized a blood transfusion?! She's a Shenlong and his father is/was the most recent Yangmingsi. How does she not know about his intolerance for impurities?"

The frown darkened even further, and a glimmer of insanity began to spark in his eyes. Zicheng touched his shoulder in reassurance, and that glimmer retreated, leaving only the righteous anger behind. "It seems she wants to believe he is a normal child rather than one with a heavy burden that my line carries. From what I can remember of your life's memories, she wanted you to stay away from little Xi after hearing you mention spirits. I believe that confrontation with your parents happened right before you woke up with these memories. Truly, such a foolish woman. Willful obliviousness to the point of causing harm to her child- she cannot let go of her pride."

The child rolled his eyes in impatience. "Maybe, but that just means I have to sneak into the hospital to see him without her knowing for the time being." He pressed a clenched fist to his heart, his eyes going hazy as he focused on his internal bond. "Right now, all I can feel is pain and loneliness. He needs me, so I'm going, with or without you guys, got it?"

Zicheng smiled slightly in pride. "Of course we're coming little one, don't worry. We're right with you."

"Good, now let's go before it gets too dark and my parents start worrying." _Wait for me Duanmu Xi, I have a promise to keep._


	2. Reunion

**Chapter Two: Reunion**

 _Thank you for the positive response. This chapter is slightly shorter, but I hope you enjoy it. Feel free to review!_

Jinghua looked up at the hospital, eyes focusing on the third floor. That's where he could feel his other half, sleeping and in pain. All hesitations were discarded at that reminder. Marching into the hospital, he headed straight to the receptionist's desk, fully prepared to bring out the greatest weapon in his arsenal if needed: teary puppy eyes. It would become ineffective after he turned eighteen and his face became mature, but for now, they were perfect as an effective weapon of last resort.

He smiled sweetly at the receptionist. "Hello Ma'am. I want to visit my friend here. He's on the third floor."

She smiled back, charmed. "Of course dear, what's his name? And I need your name too, ok?"

His smile weakened a bit at that. "His name is Duanmu Xi. And my name is Qin Yang!" He lied through his teeth, praying that his name had actually been Duanmu and not something he had adopted upon joining the main family. As for his fake name, he had no regrets, blatantly ignoring the helpless giggle fit that Luoyue had fallen into somewhere off his side. Those two truly had been meant for each other, and those names wouldn't be recognizable to someone who was not a main member of the Duanmu family household.

The lady looked through her list on the computer, locating his name. "Ah, here we go, this is your friend. He's in room 323, you can go straight up. Visiting hours are over in an hour. And make sure you two don't play too hard so he can get out of the hospital faster okay?"

The now child smiled brightly at that, opening his eyes as widely as he could in a rather effective attempt at innocence. "I promise. I don't want him to get hurt more. Thank you for your help!" And with a bow, he rushed off to the elevator, that eager expression sliding off his face to be replaced by one more stoic. That was one more obstacle down, now he just had to hope that Xi's mother was nowhere near his room. He didn't want to start a confrontation with his mother and possibly injure the other by their fight. Duanmu Xi was fragile enough as it was.

He looked at Luoyue worriedly. "Are you sure he's ok? He's not going to die now, is he?"

The spirit sighed in exasperation, "Yang Jinghua. The child survived this incident the first time around without any interference from you. Your presence now will actually just speed up his healing. Calm down."

Zicheng came forward to reassure his descendant. "Little one, it will be fine. Don't worry yourself over such minor incidents. Remember, a swordsman must be able to focus on the present instead of worrying about vague possibilities in order to emerge victorious."

He pouted up at his ancestor. "Fine, you have a point. I'll worry about the bigger stuff that we have to change instead. I just need to figure out a way to slip him my email address and phone number for when we move away at some point. Why can't I have a cell phone already?" And then he frowned, his attention caught by, "Zicheng, why do you keep calling me little? I'm in my twenties!"

He held back a chuckle of amusement. "Right now, you are ten. And you spent much of your afterlife as a fourteen year old. Besides, we have existed for centuries. Nearly everyone in the world is young to us. You just happen to currently have the stature to reflect it."

He pouted harder at that. "Unfair. I miss my older self."

Luoyue spoke up at that, voice trembling at the effort it took to restrain his laugh. "I'm sure that your spirit ocean has both that form and your fourteen-year old self saved. And perhaps you will be able to access both once my cute little descendant regains his memories. You two have done such absurd things like that before, so I wouldn't be surprised. Ah, we're here."

All levity slipped away, replaced by a determined expression. Now was the time to see his best friend, and other half.

* * *

Luoyue and Zicheng slipped into another layer of the world, not wanting to be seen by anyone else and have odd questions raised regarding their presence.

Reminding himself that he would just be a child at the moment, Jinghua walked into the room and let out a sigh of relief at the empty room; he also wouldn't have to deal with a paranoid mother at the moment. Looking over at the bed, he saw a tuft of black hair sticking out from the covers. _Ah, that's right; he used to have black hair as a child._ And the five-year-old wasn't asleep either; he could see the curious eyes peeking out from between a gap in the blankets. He pasted on a friendly smile and walked over carefully, not wanting to frighten the other into panicking.

"Hey kid, when someone becomes your friend, isn't it polite to give your name in return? It took me so long to figure out your name and find you when I heard that you ended up in the hospital."

Duanmu Xi slowly unwrapped himself from his cocoon of blankets. "I'm sorry. I thought I'd never see you again. Am I still your friend?"

The older child's heart melted at the look the other was wearing, unable to maintain his mock stern expression. "Of course we are. Now let's start over. My name is Yang Jinghua, and your name is?"

"My name is Duanmu Xi. Nice to meet you!" He smiled brightly, almost erasing the image of the bandages wrapped around his head.

The other smiled back, before switching to a slightly more serious look. "You too! Now I don't know what's going to happen after you get out of the hospital. You might move away or I might, it depends on our parents. But this is my phone number and my email address. You can use both or either to talk to me whenever you want. I promised to protect you, and this is one way that I can even if we're no longer in the same area. Okay?"

Xi's eyes were teary. "But I don't want you to go away! You're my friend!"

He sat down on the bed to draw the younger into a hug. "I know, but we're still kids. We can't change things that our parents tell us to do. But we can still keep in contact, right? And at some point, we can meet again. But we will always be friends, no matter how far apart we are. I promise, okay?"

The five-year-old pouted, still teary eyed. "Okay, but if you forget me, I'm going to be mad. So don't forget."

Jinghua chuckled at that. "I won't." He glanced up at the clock, surprised to see how much time had gone by since his arrival. "Xi, I have to go, visiting hours are almost over. But I will come back and visit again tomorrow."

He let go of his grip on the older boy's shirt reluctantly, not wanting to let him go away and disappear. "You better come back."

Standing up, he looked down at the younger, frowning slightly. He felt as if this would be the last time he would see Duanmu Xi in a long time, and his instincts generally were correct. So just in case, "I will. But remember, spirits are real. Not all of them are bad, but you have to be careful because they can hurt you too. Don't forget that." He leaned down and brushed a light kiss over the bandages over his head. "And that's for good luck. I'll see you again."

"Bye-bye," The child whispered, watching as his hero walked out of his sight. "Please come back."

* * *

As the door closed, Jinghua closed his eyes as his two spirits faded back into view. "He's so young and innocent," he murmured softly. "I just want to wrap him in a blanket and protect him from the world."

"He'll be fine. And in five years, he'll have his memories back and be able to protect himself. But for now, all you can do is wait. Protect him as much as you can while he's still here." Zicheng responded in an attempt to comfort his charge.

"He won't be here much longer. I'm not sure if he'll even be here tomorrow. I can feel it." He turned to Luoyue. "Will you watch out for him? Since I won't be able to?"

The spirit sighed. "I will, but I can't stay away from you for too long. But there is still the bond between you two. You will be able to feel if he needs help. And I understand why, but you keep on forgetting. My descendant is young and vulnerable at the moment, but he will survive. He is the one who managed to gain full control of the Duanmu household by the time he was sixteen, and he kept his hold on them until he died. Your worry is doing a disservice to him."

The child chuckled slightly, a small smile returning to his face. "That's true. I'm glad both of you are here to knock some sense into me."

His ancestor smiled at him. "We're both happy to be with you. Now, come, let's go home. It's almost time for dinner, and I'm sure your parents are beginning to get worried."

"Ah, you're right! Come on; let's go before they start a search for me!" Jinghua ran off, his worries and concerns forgotten for the moment. His two guardians exchanged a smile before rushing off after him.


End file.
